Pakistan's army says a military court has convicted five officers of links with a banned extremist group.

The army said in a statement Friday that the court sentenced Brigadier Ali Khan to five years in prison.

A brigadier is the equivalent of a one-star general.

The army did not give details of the case. The officers were rounded up in May 2011 for their links with the Hizb-ut-Tahrir group.

Four army majors received sentences ranging from six months to three years.

The officers have the right to appeal.

Hizb-ut-Tahrir is an Islamist organization that wants to reestablish the caliphate, the administrative structure that once governed a portion section of the Muslim world. It insists it does not advocate violence in achieving its goals.